Tracy Strobel, deputy director of the Cuyahoga County Public Library, is busy replacing or revamping 18 of its 28 branches.

She also takes care of horses for hire and tours libraries in Seoul and Amsterdam as one of two U.S. members picked for the International Network of Emerging Library Innovators.

Does Northeast Ohio have enough trails for you?

I grew up in Bath, and I've been riding for 30 years, and there's still bridle paths in half an hour's drive I haven't tried yet. We're very fortunate to border Hinckley Metropark. We're out there in good and bad weather.

Tell us about your stable.

We have seven horses at home. Some of them are boarders. We have a little business. I have two ex-racehorses I've retrained for eventing.

The horse scene is fantastic here. We have multiple show venues within an hour's drive. We have everything we need.

Tell us about the International Innovators.

It's sponsored by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. We're the first class. It's a three-year program. I'm on a team with one colleague from Uganda and one from Sweden.

What have foreigners heard about Cuyahoga's libraries?

Ohio libraries have incredible reputations internationally for having so much support. In per capita circulation, Cuyahoga's number one in the country: roughly 33 items per capita.

Is it easy to recruit workers here?

Yes. Northeast Ohio is to librarians like Hollywood is to actors. This is where innovation happens, where the great jobs are, and where the most library-loving people in the nation are.

Tell us something we don't know about your boss, Sari Feldman.

She and Matt love to babysit our kids. They have two grown daughters, one in New York, one in D.C. They miss kids.

After dumping yours on the Feldmans, where do you and Marty hang out?

The last time, we went down to the art museum and had dinner at the fancy new restaurant there, Provenance. It was fantastic. Then we just wandered all over the museum. There's an app we follow along. Gallery 1 is amazing, with all these technology touch screens. The museum's a perfect date for me, because they kick you out at 9.

Where do you grab a bite during the workday?

I have to admit I often make a meal out of Mitchell's Ice Cream. If I'm downtown, I figure out a way to have lunch at Vincenza's downtown. I shared a Friday fish fry at Sarah's Place in Gates Mills with a new person I hired from Florida. Pierogies were a new experience for him.

It's so easy to use library research tools on line now, and even pay for deliveries, why bother going to a branch any more?

Our door count in 2012 was higher than ever: 7.6 million people countywide. Once people start using the library online, they're exposed to all the different offerings and end up coming in.

What are some of the latest offerings?

This sounds crazy, but there's a recording studio in Warrensville. The whole idea is you come to a library to create rather than just ingest information. There's music for sale on iTunes that was created there.

This summer, 25 of our 28 branches will get a gigabyte of broadband. Garfield Heights will have an audio/video studio. Parma-Snow will have an accessible green roof. Mayfield features an interactive children's area focused on wetland science.

What are some old-time offerings that still surprise newcomers?

We circulate toys. A lot of parents want to try them before they buy them, or grandparents borrow them when children are coming.

Even in 2013, people are surprised that you can have a cup of coffee and snacks in libraries. Not only do we allow them but we sell them.

Do people ever stain the books?

They spill it more often on the carpet. If I could make one choice differently in Warrensville, the carpet is way too light. We had to pull the hot chocolate out of the vending machine.

With Warrensville's high glass ceiling, are the utility bills high, too?

The heating and cooling is geothermal and comes from under the floor. We maintain a comfortable temperature up to about eight feet. We always joke that we heat high enough for the mayor, [former basketball star] Brad Sellers. He's 7 feet tall.

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